This is a re-posting of an article I wrote on LinkedIn on July 17th. It’s re-posted here as a record of all my thoughts on neurodiveristy in one place.

Diversity in general must be a deliberate effort. This starts at the organizational planning stage. When developing an organizational strategy you need to include diversity as a factor. The same as you would consider different roles and experience levels in your plan. Diversity can be called a “big thing,” and it is. It covers race, gender, sociology-economic background, neurodivergence and more. I’m not qualified to talk about these in detail. So rather than try, I’m going to talk about team diversity in the abstract and then dive into one area that’s close to me. Neurodiversity.

To talk about diversity and leadership I’m going to lean lightly on Nietzsche’s theory of perspectivism. “A thousand goals have there been so far, for there are a thousand peoples. Only the yoke for the thousand necks is still lacking: the one goal is lacking.” Think of diversity as the 1000 perspectives that match those goals. Each brings something rich. As a leader it’s your job to be deliberate in which perspectives have a seat at the table and the role they play. In other words to craft the one goal. It means being thoughtful about what’s needed by the organization. How each perspective supports and enhances the others. Diversity doesn’t happen by talking about it. It happens through thoughtful planning and actions. Too often organizations get caught up in the notion that a role is a cookie cutter. Everyone must fit that shape. The reality is that lot’s of gingerbread people have missing limbs. There is no such thing as a pegacorn (part pegasus, part unicorn). But there are eagles, horses and narwhals. Managing to the cookie cutter is easy. Taking a look at the over all shape of the team and finding the perspectives that fit that shape is hard. Being a leader is hard. I find it sad that so many people, who are otherwise good leaders, choose the easy path of management when it comes to diversity. Be better.

That said, I’m going to pause for a moment to look at Neurodiversity. This is a broad category that includes things like Dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Chronic Depression and others. Some estimates claim that between 20% to 25% of the population falls into this category which spans all other diversity categories. I’ve recently discovered that I’m one such person, having been diagnosed with Level 1 ASD (ASD-1). According to the CDC about 1% of the world’s population has autism spectrum disorder. That’s over 75 million people.

What does it mean to have ASD-1? ASD-1 is inclusive of Asperger’s syndrome and has replaced it as a diagnosis. ASD-1 also covers the unofficial term “highly-functional” autism. Beyond that my diagnosis is new and I’m trying to figure it out. I’m still me. Nothing changes that. ASD is and always has been a part of who I am. Only now I have a name to it to start developing mechanisms to help me in areas I struggle with. But in general it does mean a few things. I’m a person with autism. It gives me certain super powers. It makes me vulnerable to types of kryptonite. And it means I’ll never fit the shape of that cookie cutter.
I’ve been fortunate in my 25+ years in technology. For the most part I’ve had leaders who let me stretch and grow my super powers. They exposed me to safe doses of kryptonite and didn’t force me to play with it. They let the job reshape to me instead of insisting that I conform to the shape of the job. To me this is a key aspect of a neurodiversity strategy. Honestly this is good leadership in general. Over time I hope more managers see it this way. Diversity is another factor of organizational strategies. Good leaders leverage it to build stronger teams. This isn’t an alien concept in management. When I was leading my last team I leveraged a tool called strength finders. What I’m talking about here isn’t that different in concept. Diversity uses different criteria but follows the same principles. You’re building a team that works stronger together by sharing strengths to overcome challenges.

Am I saying that every job and role should make accommodations for everyone who’s neurodivergent? No. This is an area where neurodiversity differs from the other diversity categories. Though I’m still learning and may feel otherwise in the future. For example, I don’t think I’d ever be very good in a sales role. But, I can and have used my super powers to partner with and support sales people. Does that mean that someone else who’s neurodivergent wouldn’t be great at sales? Of course not. Leaders must be thoughtful and deliberate in planning and making decisions about diversity. They need to understand how different perspectives can elevate the team and how they might hinder. Saying, “there’s no way a neurodivergent person can do this job,” is managing to the cookie cutter. Be better. After thoughtful planning if you may determine there are certain non-negotiable perspectives needed. Be deliberate and transparent about them. To do otherwise invites failure.

The pandemic has thrown many of my normal routines in flux which has made the last few years rough. In some ways that may have been a good thing as it’s lead to my recent diagnosis. I’ve also found myself in a job that expects me to fit a cookie cutter. I’m learning that no matter how much I may raise the bar through my super powers, the kryptonite won’t allow me to be successful at all that’s expected of the role. We live. We learn. We move on. And so shall I. But I’ve found myself wondering a few things. How many good people have been discarded because they don’t fit “the shape?” Or worse, how many never had the chance to try?

Epilogue
Deciding to publish this article was more difficult than I anticipated. I’ve been processing my initial feelings about my diagnosis. Part of me wants to shout from the roof tops and share every thing I’ve learned in these first weeks. One thing I learned through the diagnosis process is that I’ve become good at hiding my symptoms. There’s that lizard brain part of me that want’s to keep hiding. The lizard whispers to me, “It’ll hurt you if people know. They’ll treat you differently. It won’t change anything so keep it to yourself.” I don’t know if sharing this article will change anything or help anyone. I do know that saying nothing guarantees its own outcome.